Our real estate agent heads to Rio Olympics

Kapunda’s Portia Stanton-Noble is among thousands of volunteers across the globe gearing up for an overseas operation – the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

RIO BOUND: Kapunda’s Portia Stanton-Noble will volunteer at this year's Olympic Games, which will be held in Brazil’s Rio De Janeiro in August.

Kapunda’s Portia Stanton-Noble is among thousands of volunteers across the globe gearing up for an overseas operation – the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

Ms Stanton-Noble, who is a real estate agent at Craigmore’s Ray White, will spend 10 days working closely with the athletes – and watching all the action from the sidelines – at the games in Brazil’s Rio De Janeiro in August.

It will be Ms Stanton-Noble’s third time as an Olympic volunteer, after she previously worked as a Telstra Volunteer at the Sydney games in 2000 and then in Athens in 2004.

“I’m very excited, because this will be my third Olympics,” Ms Stanton-Noble said. It’s a dream come true.”

“I always wanted to do three Olympics and I met a volunteer years ago when I was in Sydney and he’d already been in five.

“I just love the atmosphere and meeting people from all parts of the world – It’s a real buzz.

“The best one was the 2000 Sydney Olympics. It was just magic – everyone was friendly and there was a real good vibe.”

Ms Stanton-Noble is among 50,000 volunteers who have been chosen from 151 countries, but the majority will be Brazilian, making up 82 per cent of the volunteers.

“I successfully completed the online assessments and interview,” she said.

“I had to give them my resume, certificates and details about any previous experience volunteering for the Olympics.

“I don't know how many other Australians are going, but I’m fairly certain I am the only one representing the Barossa.”

While the trip is expected to cost time and a good deal of money, Ms Stanton-Noble said she was excited to “give back”, while mingle with the nation’s top athletes and experience Rio’s party life.

“I’m looking forward to Rio, because I think they know how to party,” she said.

“At the 2000 Sydney Olympics I bumped into Australian professional tennis players, The Woodies (Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde), Cathy Freeman and a couple famous swimmers.

“I’m also trying to learn Spanish and we are undergoing a Portuguese course for the next few weeks.

“I’m just looking forward to the experience and I’m so glad my work allows me to do it.

“I’ve got a very supportive principal at Ray White – he’s is more than happy for me to be involved in community events and work.”

More than 10,500 athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), including from Kosovo and South Sudan for the first time, will take part in this sporting event, which will run from August 5 to August 21, 2016.